Filling ‘gap,’ Boise restaurant opens walkup breakfast window; adds liquor, plans rebrand
Things are getting funkier at The Funky Taco — in a mouthwatering way.
In anticipation of a coming rebrand, the downtown Boise restaurant is rolling out changes.
New owners Kasey Allen and Dan Sell — founders of The STIL ice cream shops — bought The Funky Taco last August. They recently added a liquor license to the restaurant at 801 W. Bannock St. A full bar and cocktail menu debuted with choices such as a paloma ($11) and house old-fashioned ($14).
They also just opened a new morning concept: Oddbox Breakfast Project, operated through The Funky Taco’s previously underutilized Bannock Street walk-up window.
Breakfast burritos, sandos
Selling burritos and sandwiches, Oddbox is open 7:30 to 10:30 a.m. weekdays — with Saturdays coming soon. Customers can order online at eatlivefunky.com and head over to pick up food, or order for delivery. Or just stroll up to the Bannock Street window, peruse the menu and wait 10 minutes or so for hot food.
Allen sees an opportunity for Oddbox to fill a culinary void downtown. A “gap,” he says.
“There’s some breakfast restaurants where you can go and sit down and order off the menu,” he explains. “Or there’s coffee shops where you can swing in and grab a pastry. But there’s not many options for made-to-order breakfast burritos or breakfast sandwiches.”
“We’ve got an awesome and delicious menu,” he promises.
I tried one of the burritos and have to agree — it was tasty and satisfying.
Oddbox sells five burritos ($9.99 to $13.99) and three sandwiches ($8.99 to $9.99). The Normal Guy ($9.99) burrito was created with downtown employees in mind — the type of breakfast they might order a couple of times a week, Allen says. It’s filled with traditional ingredients: scrambled eggs, seasoned Idaho potatoes and cheddar cheese. You also can add bacon ($2 extra), steak ($3.50) or vegetables.
Famished? Live large with The One ($13.99) — aka The One Pound. (That’s my name for it.) A feast of flavors, mine actually weighed more than a pound. It was jammed with spicy pulled pork, crispy prosciutto, seasoned Idaho potatoes, roasted peppers, scrambled eggs, queso, guacamole and crema. Despite its heft, it travels well. Wrapped in foil and delivered 10 or 15 minutes away, it was still plenty warm — and not messy to consume. The accompanying salsa? Solid. But the little ramekin of mango habanero sauce truly stood out — sweet and addictive. (Just be careful. It’s no joke — with serious lingering kick.)
Coming soon: Salu
When Oddbox closes for the day, The Funky Taco kicks into gear.
Bringing liquor back to the restaurant — it served cocktails years ago — is a major plus for any dining establishment located on the 8th Street entertainment corridor.
But a more dramatic transformation is coming.
Opened in 2018, The Funky Taco soon will cease to exist. Renaming and rebranding the restaurant as Salu, Allen and Sell plan to keep a handful of old favorites, whether they’re globally inspired tacos or the popular Funky Nachos. (Yum. Those nachos are built on a foundation of housemade white corn chips and Modelo-infused beer cheese.)
But tacos won’t dominate at Salu. Instead, the menu will diversify into small plates, tapas, tacos and other entrees, Allen says.
“I think it will still kind of have that eclectic fusion theme,” he adds. “That’s one thing The Funky Taco is known for.”
There’s no timeline to make the switch. “But,” Allen says, “we’d love to have it up and running by the summer.
“We’re not going to do anything overly crazy. We want to paint the exterior and the interior. We want to redo some of the lighting. Freshen it up. But we’re not going to shut down and gut the place. It’s going to be a cosmetic overhaul.”
The idea for Salu, he says, is to be “kind of a cool new concept that pays its respects to The Funky Taco — still has the best of The Funky Taco’s menu on there. But has some new, fresh things along with the liquor license that are hopefully welcome changes.”
This story was originally published February 25, 2025 at 4:00 AM.